- Reliance's net profit rose 23% QoQ to Rs 20,946 crore, beating estimates
- Revenue increased 5% to Rs 3.09 lakh crore; Ebitda up 8% to Rs 47,517 crore
- O2C business Ebitda jumped 17% sequentially, driven by petrochemical spreads
Reliance Industries Ltd. reported an in-line set of June quarter results, with stronger performance from its oil-to-chemicals (O2C) and oil & gas businesses driving earnings growth, while its retail business posted its weakest sequential performance in five years.
The conglomerate's consolidated net profit rose 23% quarter-on-quarter to Rs 20,946 crore, beating the Bloomberg consensus estimate of Rs 20,451 crore. Revenue increased 5% to Rs 3.09 lakh crore from Rs 2.94 lakh crore in the March quarter, while Ebitda climbed 8% to Rs 47,517 crore. Ebitda margin improved to 15.4% from 15%.
O2C Business Outperforms
The standout performer during the quarter was the O2C business. Segment Ebitda jumped 17% sequentially to Rs 17,010 crore from Rs 14,520 crore, aided by a sharp expansion in petrochemical spreads and stronger gross refining margins (GRMs) at the company's SEZ refinery.
Segment revenue increased 9% sequentially to Rs 2.02 lakh crore from Rs 1.85 lakh crore, while margin expanded to 8.43% from 7.85%, supported by stronger refining and petrochemical margins.
Oil & Gas Outperform Expectations
The oil and gas exploration business also outperformed expectations, with Ebitda rising 19% quarter-on-quarter to Rs 4,973 crore from Rs 4,195 crore. The improvement was driven by stable production levels and lower operating costs.
Segment revenue rose 7% quarter-on-quarter to Rs 6,298 crore from Rs 5,867 crore.
Retail Business Under Pressure
In contrast, the retail business remained under pressure. Segment Ebitda declined 9% sequentially to Rs 6,309 crore from Rs 6,921 crore, marking its biggest quarterly decline in the last 20 quarters. Revenue from the retail business also fell 8% quarter-on-quarter, reflecting softer demand and continued investments in the company's digital business, which weighed on profitability.
The retail arm of Reliance Industries reported an 8% sequential decline in net profit to Rs 3,271 crore from Rs 3,563 crore in the March quarter.
Reliance Jio Delivered In-Line Performance
Reliance Jio delivered a largely in-line performance, with subscriber additions and average revenue per user (ARPU) broadly matching analysts' expectations.
The telecom arm of billionaire industrialist Mukesh Ambani's conglomerate logged a bottom-line of Rs 7,764 crore, compared to Rs 7,317 crore in the March quarter of FY26.
The average revenue per user (ARPU) increased marginally to Rs 215.6, compared to Rs 214 in the previous quarter on the back of a better subscriber mix and positive seasonality partly impacted by promotional schemes for fixed broadband customers.
Subscriber base expanded to 533.3 million from 524.4 in the previous quarter. Per capita data consumption was 43.7 GB/month with total data traffic growth of 5% QoQ to 69.4 billion GB from 66 billion GB in Q4.
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Apart from the operating performance, higher other income provided additional support to the bottom line. Other income surged 47% sequentially during the quarter. However, the gains were partly offset by a 27% rise in finance costs, which analysts attributed largely to the impact of a weaker rupee.
The company's balance sheet continued to improve, with net debt declining to Rs 1.23 lakh crore from Rs 1.25 lakh crore in the previous quarter. Net debt-to-Ebitda remained stable at 0.6 times, indicating a comfortable leverage position.
The June quarter underlined the strength of Reliance's energy businesses, which more than offset weakness in retail. Investors will now closely watch management commentary on refining margins, retail demand, Jio's growth trajectory, capital expenditure plans and the progress of its new energy business.
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